2020 Community Impact Report

Dear YMCA Friends,

For all of us in the YMCA of Austin family, 2020 has been a year like no other. We’ve all been tested and challenged in ways we could never have expected, but we rose up and remained true to who we are as an organization. In the toughest times, our guiding question has always been, “How do we keep reaching those who need us most?” And though we still face more bumps in the road ahead, we have, as a Y community, have much to be grateful for.

• When the coronavirus pandemic began, we responded by opening up emergency child care sites for the children of essential workers. We offered financial assistance so that parents did not have to worry about the cost, or about who was watching their children while they were on the front lines protecting us.
• As seniors faced isolation during the lockdown, we made thousands of check-in calls and organized virtual gatherings, sometimes just social hours over a cup of coffee.
• As families faced food insecurity, the YMCA of Austin partnered with Brighter Bites and the Central Texas Food Bank to deliver boxes of produce and meals for kids at three Y locations. Our YMCA responded to this need by handing out 300,000 pounds of produce and 46,000 meals to families and children.
• After the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis set off waves of social unrest across the nation, the Y partnered with Austin Health Commons to host a series of virtual Racial Healing Circles. 
• When city and state leaders eased restrictions and allowed Y branches to reopen, we put in place strict social distancing and safety measures that enabled members to come together once again to practice healthy habits and spend quality time with friends and family. 
• As schools reopened in our service area, we partnered with local districts to offer full-day care and support for virtual learning while parents went to work. By providing these spaces for our families, we helped meet a community need that had never been there before. Now, as students return to schools for in-person learning, we’re providing traditional afterschool child care.

The YMCA is a community anchor that is here for good. We are proud to have stepped forward to serve our neighbors during this time of need and will continue to do so as long as that need remains. We want to also recognize all of those who have empowered us to have a strong community impact in 2020. Thank you to our board leadership, volunteers, incredible staff, and you.

We are so grateful for the many pieces of this puzzle that make the Y whole. You make the Y possible.

Thank you for being a part of this journey with us and for being a part of our Y family.

James P. Finck - President & CEO, YMCA of Austin 

Dorothee Auldridge - Chief Volunteer Officer, YMCA of Austin